Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1887-04-30


| ing from your facility as critic, one
would suppose that the period of your
service was the golden age OF Sunhower
legislation and that generations, yet un-
born, would refer with pride to the time
when the Kansas Eolus, IN the person of
| Marsh Murdoch, sat in the senate hall,
gently tanning the galleries with bis
breath when In repose, and causing the
walls to rock as with a cyclone when In
motion. But strange as it may appear,
while THIS legislature of extravagant
cranks have taxed the people at the rate
of three and three-tenths mills on the
dollar, YOU forced them to pay tribute to
the State treasury at the rate of six mills
| on the dollar. In other words, where we
have compelled the taxpayer to con-
| tribute thirty three cents you forced him
to pay sixty.
You say the taxpayers will sweat for
years on account of the extravaganza of
| this legislature If SO, they must have
been covered with perfect lather of
perspiration when you were managing
the affairs of the state.
You will observe, Sir, that l speak of
you as composing the Legislature OF that
period. / know, of course, that there
were other nominal members of THAT
BODY, but Judging from your own stand
ard of your ability, (and I know that
your innate modesty must lead you to
rather underestimate your intellectual
powers,) I conclude that as the stars
are invisible when the sun rides in the
heavens, so the other members of that
legislative body must have dwindled into
condition of obscurity and consequent
responsibility, as you cavorted down the
aisle and filed that senate chamber with
the effulgent radiance of your genius,
and therefore, upon you, and you alone,
must be laid the responsibility of the fact
that IN 1873 the dear people Of Kansas
were taxed almost twice as heavily In
proportion to their wealth as by the pres
ent legislature of 'extravagant cranks."
But not content with criticising
Our extravaganza, you have seen lit to
impugn our motives. We were bought
with boquets-our action was for bun
comb, and finally you catch up with q
howl of delight and spread broad cast
the assertion, made by a Democratic
member of the house, THAT forty mem
bers of this legislature VINO voted for the
Municipal Suffrage bill afterwards went
to the governor and asked him to veto the
same" In regard to this assertion, l
have the authority of Governor Martin,
himself, that it is not true. Instead OF
forty members OF the lower house who
voted for the bill, asking the governor to
veto the same, there were not to exceed a
dozen members Of both houses, who
voted either for or against the bill, who
spoke to Governor Martin in regrd to a
veto. How many Of these ten Or twelve
were cowardly enough to vote for the
bill and then ask the governor to veto it,
[ do not know, but venture to say that
instead of forty there were not five.
But you say that our votes were
bought with boquets and that our actions
were simply for buncomb. To these
assertions [ must take humble though
firm exceptions. [ know, Sir, that you
are responsible to a large degree for al
most all of the temporal blessings which
Kansas enjoys and that we bash in your
warming and vivifying influence like SO
many bluebottled flies on sunlighted
window, but when you attempt to usurp
the functions Of the Almighty and be-
come searcher of the hearts Of mon, [
object. Is it not enough that he has per-
mitted you to hatch out the city of
Wichita and gather its multiplied addi-
tons under your wings, even as a hen
gathereth her chickens? Must you, in
addition to all this, invite him to take
back seat while you proclaim the motives
which influence the actions of men? It
seems to me, Marsh, that you ought to
give God a chance.
In conclusion, Sir, [ wish to make
this suggestion: When you make
charges in regard to legislative extrav-
agance, which are calculated to injure,
not only the reputation of the men who
have been SO unfortunate as to be elected
to the legislature, but the entire Repub-
hcan party OF the state as well, please
give us some figures taken from the rec
ords made by previous legislatures and
let the people see whether the expendi-
lures by the last legislature are any
greater IN proportion to the wealth and |
population of the state, than the expen-
ditures of their predecessors. So far as
your Judgment of the motives of legis-
lators is concerned, that is matter of
comparative Indifference. Notwithstand-
ing the fact that a considerable number
of individuals in different parts of the
State have fed you on large chunks of
taffy which you have swallowed with
marvellous avidity, still there is very
number of people who can
not be made to believe that your eyes are
gifted with more than ordinary vision,
or that infinite wisdom fingers beneath
your sun-kissed hair.
Yours truly,
Z. A. MCNEAL.
A Wonderful Book.
An agency for one of j, w. Buel's books